A Favored Retreat

Lake Tahoe in the Summer.

In the summer we go up to the mountains to seek a respite from the heat that drives everyone indoors. My favorite place to go is Lake Tahoe. Every time we go there my mom says, “Look at how blue the water is!” Looking out over the surface of the water, I see a shiny, cobalt surface. Later, paddling out a little ways from the beach, I see the floor of the lake right under me, though it must be at least fifty feet deep. The water is cool, and has a gentle wake. White, soft and wet the sand is almost like dough. If we get to the lake early enough, morning fog is still hanging over the lake. It’s almost as though it clears the waters before humans arrive so that the water is always cold, clean, and blue, ready for us to cool off in it, and to admire God’s creation.

--Jonathan Todd